Platinum benefit
Health Insurance Hacker™
Scan your insurance card and we will tell you what your plan already owes you — the care it must cover for free, the programmes your carrier runs, and the eleven moves that get you the rest.
None of this is a loophole. Every play here is a benefit or a right your plan already owes you. Most people simply never ask.
One photo
Scan your insurance card
The front is enough. It is read on your phone and never uploaded — we take the carrier and the plan type, and nothing else.
In a hurry, or the photo will not focus? Picking these two is the same answer, instantly.
Pay less for the same care
- 1
Ask the cash price before you show your card
For imaging, labs and minor procedures the self-pay rate is sometimes lower than your copay — especially early in the year while your deductible is unmet.
Say this
“What is your self-pay or cash price for this, and how does it compare to what I would owe with my plan?”
- 2
Move the scan out of the hospital
A hospital outpatient department usually bills a facility fee on top of the scan. A free-standing imaging centre often does not.
Say this
“Is this facility billed as hospital outpatient? Can the same scan be done at a free-standing imaging centre in network?”
- 3
Use the preferred pharmacy, not the closest one
Most plans have a preferred pharmacy tier where the same prescription costs less. Mail order for a 90-day supply is often cheaper again.
Say this
“Which pharmacies are preferred on my plan, and what would a 90-day mail-order supply cost compared with 30 days retail?”
- 4
Check the bill against the EOB
The Explanation of Benefits shows what your plan allowed. A bill above the allowed amount from an in-network provider is usually an error worth disputing.
Say this
“Please send me an itemised bill. The EOB shows the allowed amount as X — can you explain the difference?”
Take what is already yours
- 5
Take the $0 preventive visit
Most plans cover an annual preventive visit and a set of screenings at no cost to you. It only stays free if it is coded as preventive.
Say this
“I am booking my annual preventive visit. Please confirm it will be coded as preventive under my plan.”
- 6
Spend allowances before they reset
Dental, vision and over-the-counter allowances are use-it-or-lose-it. They reset annually or quarterly and do not roll over.
Say this
“How much of my dental, vision and OTC allowance is left this year, and when does it reset?”
- 7
Claim the benefits nobody advertises
Fitness memberships, telehealth at $0, transportation, nutrition programmes, hearing aids and wellness rewards are commonly included and rarely used.
Say this
“What benefits am I eligible for that I have not used this year? Fitness, telehealth, transportation, hearing, wellness rewards?”
- 8
Drain the FSA before the deadline
An FSA balance is usually forfeited at year end. An HSA is not — it rolls over and invests, so the play there is to fund it, not spend it.
Say this
“What is my remaining FSA balance, what is the deadline, and is there a grace period or carryover?”
Do not accept the first answer
- 9
Get prior authorisation in writing first
A denial after the fact is far harder to reverse than getting it approved before the appointment.
Say this
“Does this require prior authorisation? Please confirm the authorisation number in writing before I book.”
- 10
Appeal the denial — most people never do
Your plan must give you an appeals process, and denials are overturned more often than people expect. Ask for the specific reason in writing first.
Say this
“Please send the denial reason in writing and the appeals process. I am filing an appeal.”
- 11
Ask who else is in the room
Surprise bills often come from an out-of-network anesthesiologist, radiologist or assistant at an in-network facility.
Say this
“Will everyone treating me be in network — including anesthesiology, radiology and pathology?”
Coming next
Your plan, not just any plan
Tell us your carrier and plan and this becomes specific — your allowances, your preferred pharmacies, your remaining balances, in your numbers.
Not connected yet. Personal numbers come from your plan's own documents and public CMS plan data, matched to your exact plan. Until that is wired up we will not put a dollar figure next to your name — a wrong number about your coverage is worse than no number. Insurance card scanning stays off until the privacy and security work behind it is finished and signed off.
Benefit navigation information only, and general to most plans rather than specific to yours. FirstPass does not provide medical advice and does not guarantee coverage — your plan documents and your carrier decide what is covered. Always confirm with your plan before you rely on any of it. Compare membership levels